Experimental investigations of air sparging to control contaminated groundwater

This paper investigates the feasibility of using air trapped in the pores of soil to reduce soil permeability and hence form a barrier to groundwater flow. The laboratory experiments carried out investigated: (a) how to inject air into the soil in such a way that contaminated water is discouraged from entering the air-injected (sparged) region; (b) what factors affect the airflow; and (c) whether the sparged region can deflect a plume of contaminant. It was found that this application of air sparging can be used to form a barrier to groundwater flow in laboratory scale experiments.